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BMX Vert lights up Austin Capitol

Jamie Bestwick won his ninth consecutive gold medal in BMX Vert on opening night of X Games Austin on Thursday, riding in the shadow of the Texas State Capitol building. Bestwick held off challenges from Simon Tabron and Dennis McCoy, who took silver and bronze, respectively, thanks to big tricks like a front flip flair, alley-oop tailwhip turndown, flair tailwhip and 540 one-foot seatgrab combo.

"When I broke the record last year, that was stressful," said Bestwick, who set the X Games mark for the most consecutive wins last year with his eighth victory in a row at X Games Barcelona. "I really wanted that record. Everything after that is just seeing how long it can hold up."

Dennis McCoy, 47, is the second oldest athlete at XG Austin (Ricky Johnson, 49, is competing in RallyCross) and he's the only athlete to compete in every BMX Vert competition in the history of X Games. Austin marks his 21st X Games appearance.

Travis Pastrana, who will compete in RallyCross on Saturday, watched the BMX Vert finals at the Texas State Capitol along with his daughter, Addy, and his wife, pro skateboarder Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins Pastrana.

Bestwick, who won his first X Games medal in 1996, now has 13 career X Games golds. "I hope I'm inspiring my generation of riders, and younger riders, too," Bestwick said. "I hope they look at me and see that if you keep working hard and taking care of yourself and enjoying the sport, there can be longevity in it."

Jamie Bestwick won his ninth consecutive gold medal in BMX Vert on opening night of X Games Austin on Thursday, riding in the shadow of the Texas State Capitol building. Bestwick held off challenges from Simon Tabron and Dennis McCoy, who took silver and bronze, respectively, thanks to big tricks like a front flip flair, alley-oop tailwhip turndown, flair tailwhip and 540 one-foot seatgrab combo.

"When I broke the record last year, that was stressful," said Bestwick, who set the X Games mark for the most consecutive wins last year with his eighth victory in a row at X Games Barcelona. "I really wanted that record. Everything after that is just seeing how long it can hold up."

Dennis McCoy, 47, is the second oldest athlete at XG Austin (Ricky Johnson, 49, is competing in RallyCross) and he's the only athlete to compete in every BMX Vert competition in the history of X Games. Austin marks his 21st X Games appearance.

Travis Pastrana, who will compete in RallyCross on Saturday, watched the BMX Vert finals at the Texas State Capitol along with his daughter, Addy, and his wife, pro skateboarder Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins Pastrana.

Bestwick, who won his first X Games medal in 1996, now has 13 career X Games golds. "I hope I'm inspiring my generation of riders, and younger riders, too," Bestwick said. "I hope they look at me and see that if you keep working hard and taking care of yourself and enjoying the sport, there can be longevity in it."

Nine-peat

Joshua Duplechian/ESPN

Jamie Bestwick won his ninth consecutive gold medal in BMX Vert on opening night of X Games Austin on Thursday, riding in the shadow of the Texas State Capitol building. Bestwick held off challenges from Simon Tabron and Dennis McCoy, who took silver and bronze, respectively, thanks to big tricks like a front flip flair, alley-oop tailwhip turndown, flair tailwhip and 540 one-foot seatgrab combo.

X Games Austin 2014 -- photo highlights from the BMX Vert final in downtown Austin